With the recent announcement by Joni Mitchell that she has suffered with this psychosomatic issue for years, it is time once again to talk about echo-chambers, enabling communities and profiteers online and offline.

It's not that conspiracy theory profiteers are disappearing, far from it. Social media has made it easier than ever to make a straw man out of the 24 hour news cycle for those who believe in an all-encompassing conspiracy. Meanwhile, their friends and family trying to convince them otherwise has much the opposite effect.

Written by Derek Hawkins (Washington Post) A Florida woman who claimed the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School was a hoax was sentenced Wednesday to five months in prison for … Continue reading Sandy Hook hoaxer gets prison time for threatening 6-year-old victim’s father

I know a fair amount about conspiracy theories. When I was growing up, my father would regularly allude to any number of possible culprits behind the assassination of President John … Continue reading Getting Specific: Founded and Unfounded Conspiracy Theories and Why it Matters Now.

By Brian Tashman (Right Wing Watch) In recent days a report from Washington D.C.’s Fox affiliate on the death of Democratic National Committee staffer Seth Rich has dominated the conservative … Continue reading Fox’s Seth Rich Conspiracy Theory Falls Apart: ‘Investigator’ Admits He Has No Evidence

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Similar rhetoric and reporting on fringe news blogs stoked the initial Jade Helm frenzy, and thousands of Texans sounded their alarms that the highly-publicized military exercise was a federal ploy to subjugate the Lone Star State. Fears fell flat when the exercises kicked off on July 15. But some now say there could be worse to come.

The Texans were revolting. There was heavy bloodshed. The economy was gone, food was scarce and the feds were in the Lone Star State. Leal wondered aloud if it had anything to do with recent Texas legislation that formed the first state gold depository in the country and called for the repatriation of Texas gold.

He hypothesized that Texas’ founding of a gold bank will irk federal authorities so much that tensions will spiral into violence, fulfilling his interpretations of biblical prophecy. He said Texans are poised to fight, which is exactly why they’ll be target number one when order breaks down. Troops are drilling in Texas for Jade Helm this month, he opined, in preparation for a full scale operation to come.

“I believe that they would level the state of Texas. I believe they would use an EMP against Texas,” he said. “I believe that they would use all kinds of new weapons against the Texas people before they would allow anyone to challenge the Federal Reserve.”

That, Wiles alleges, will be the end of times.

According to his bio on the TruNews website, Wiles is a metroplex-area preacher who founded a radio show in 1999 and bills himself as a citizen journalist. His program broadcasts in 14 Texas cities.

Jade Helm 15, the multi-state, two-month U.S. Army Special Operations Command training exercise, began today, but the conspiracy theories surrounding it have collectively become a story unto themselves — with wild theories to include FEMA death domes and ice-cream-truck morgues.

The Army calls Jade Helm a standard training operation for unconventional warfare. But some have “connected the dots,” and the military’s true motives remain unstated: to either engage in an occupation or at least prepare for war within the U.S.

Whether you have concerns about Jade Helm or simply find the theories and ensuing furor and paranoia entertaining, below are the most striking theories. Meanwhile, skeptoid.com has a primer for anyone looking for more benign explanations to the alleged evidence of nefarious plotting — for those unworried about being labeled “sheeple” by conspiracy theorists.

ARMY TIMES

Jade Helm 15: Controversial military exercise starts Wednesday

FEMA Death Domes:

A hurricane dome in Florida in 2012, a structure that was being built in part with money from FEMA. (Photo: David J. Phillip/AP)

Some have alleged that new dome-shaped facilities are being built by FEMA for the purpose of detaining insurrectionists. While the Associated Press has written about the shelters, Jade Helm conspiracy theorists have latched onto FEMA Death Domes. Though purportedly hurricane and storm shelters that can protect a large number of people (and in cases provide community facilities like gymnasiums), conspiracy theorists argue that walls designed to withstand hurricanes and tornados make great prisons, and have linked them to Jade Helm.

Blue Bell Ice Cream trucks: If you are going to start a war, you need a place to put the bodies, right? Some conspiracy theorists believe Blue Bell Ice Cream trucks could serve as mobile morgues. While none of the conspirators at Blue Bell balked at the idea and publicized the plot, sleuths found evidence: film of about a dozen Blue Bell trucks traveling on the same highway as a military convoy, apparently I-25 in Colorado.

Blue Bell closed it’s Denver-area distribution center near I-25 in May, the same month as the video was posted. Fort Carson sits about 75 miles down I-25 from Denver. The company has said the convoy convergence was a coincidence. Blue Bell has been reeling from a recall and production shut-down following discovery of listeria monocytogenes in its ice cream. Multiple deaths in recent years have been linked to the outbreak. Still, a conspiracy-minded site called the company’s first-ever recallsuspicious and the trucks’ proximity to a military convoy “creepy” while also linking the company to the Bush family and defense contracts, but admitted it couldn’t verify whether the trucks were preparing to be mobile morgues or merely transporting food or just the trucks themselves from a closing facility.

Walmart: Always Low Prices … on bases for martial law: The world’s largest retailer has become an essential element to any Jade Helm conspiracy site. A handful of Walmarts — two in Texas and one each in Florida, California and Oklahoma — suddenly closed in April for six months, with the company saying they needed to make plumbing repairs. There are actually two groups with conspiracy theories, which note that city officials in the cities said Walmart wasn’t filing for permits for repairs, according to a Florida ABC affiliate. One group expressing doubt is organized labor: some of the closings were allegedly punitive and retaliatory measures against workers agitating for better wages and rights, something they’ve been convicted of doing in Canada.

But Jade Helm theorists remain unsatisfied with either explanation of the closing of five out of more than 4,000 U.S. stores. (In addition, they cite razor wire protecting the roof of an abandoned Walmart in Cincinnati, though some noted it is in a high crime area and that copper and HVAC equipment would be a target for thieves.) Jade Helm theorists say the military plans to enact martial law and use the stores as processing locations or possibly to control the food supply in poorer areas. A theory also involves China using the sites as command centers, as it allegedly tries to replace the dollar as the global currency with its own and disarm Americans during a hostile takeover of the nation.

Asteroid strikes: Armageddon predictions are nearly as old as humanity, and while the world won’t exist forever, doomsday prognosticators are still batting .000 despite many hearty swings. But they’re nothing if not persistent, and now some believe that Jade Helm is preparation for an asteroid strike that will wipe out life on earth. (To be fair, sending Bruce Willis to land on it and drill a hole for a bomb wouldn’t be much more useful.)

The theory goes that eventually the world-ender will be discovered by the population as the asteroid nears, and the military will be used to corral the anarchy, possibly to force people to do what it thinks needs to be done to save humanity, or else just to make the last few weeks on earth less “Lord of the Flies” and more “North Korea.”

Russia to rescue independence-seeking Texans: Recently the incoming Joint Chiefs chairman called Russia the biggest threat to the U.S. Meanwhile, some Jade Helm theorists suggest Russia is coming to arm rebels in Texas in response to the U.S. arming of rebels in Ukraine and other countries in Russia’s backyard. In fact, some say Russia has already infiltrated the U.S. to help prepare for the civil war.

An alternative to this theory is that the U.S. is pretending Russia is arming an American rebellion in order to justify a declaration of martial law. Apparently the U.S. government is using the conspiracy websites to initiate the spreading of the lie that Russia is trying to start a civil war in Texas, all as a part of a false flag operation.

And another angle says Russia is in a secret allegiance with President Barack Obama. This one suggests that foreign troops will actually run the FEMA camps imprisoning dissidents, a theory complete with a Russian invasion.

Speaking of Obama: A number of online voices have cast doubt on the idea that there will ever be a 2016 election. They say Obama simply will impose martial law and become a tyrant … using a military that largely disapproves of his overall performance as Commander and Chief.

Note: To my conservative friends and readers, don’t think that the source is singling you out. When there is a left-wing conspiracy panic (as their was post-9/11 and in the run-up to the Iraq War) it will be covered!

Jade Helm 15 Is Here! The GOP Politicians Who Encouraged Panic Over President Obama’s ‘Texas Takeover’

Plenty of people, it turns out, including Republican politicians seeking to capitalize on anti-Obama fears in order to lift their profile in the increasingly far-right party — a poll in May found that a full one-third of Republicans believed that the government was “trying to take over Texas.”

“Frankly, I gotta tell you, I think the cause of the underlying concerns is that we see instances, like a shooting in Fort Hood by a terrorist, that the president labels workplace violence. We see the president come to the border in Texas and say it’s safer than it’s ever been,” said Abbott. “And so I think it was a misplaced perception by people in Texas who have problems with the Obama administration and connected that trust with the Obama administration to the military.”

Not to be outdone by his presidential rival Perry, Sen. Ted Cruz assured his flock that he had “ reached out to the Pentagon to inquire about this exercise ,” and although he had “no reason to doubt” the official line about the training exercise, “I understand the reason for concern and uncertainty, “because when the federal government has not demonstrated itself to be trustworthy in this administration, the natural consequence is that many citizens don’t trust what it is saying.”

4. Louie Gohmert

After Abbott ordered the Texas Guard to monitor Jade Helm 15, Rep. Louie Gohmert threw himself into promoting the conspiracy theory, releasing a statement saying that the conspiracy theorists were “legitimately suspicious” because “true patriots” and Christians were being persecuted in America.

Gohmert continued with some theories of his own:

Once I observed the map depicting ‘hostile,’ ‘permissive,’ and ‘uncertain’ states and locations, I was rather appalled that the hostile areas amazingly have a Republican majority, ‘cling to their guns and religion,’ and believe in the sanctity of the United States Constitution. When the federal government begins, even in practice, games or exercises, to consider any U.S. city or state in ‘hostile’ control and trying to retake it, the message becomes extremely calloused and suspicious.

Such labeling tends to make people who have grown leery of federal government overreach become suspicious of whether their big brother government anticipates certain states may start another civil war or be overtaken by foreign radical Islamist elements which have been reported to be just across our border. Such labeling by a government that is normally not allowed to use military force against its own citizens is an affront to the residents of that particular state considered as ‘hostile,’ as if the government is trying to provoke a fight with them. The map of the exercise needs to change, the names on the map need to change, and the tone of the exercise needs to be completely revamped so the federal government is not intentionally practicing war against its own states.

Like Abbott and Perry, Gohmert was insistent that the whole conspiracy theory was President Obama’s fault:

5. Rand Paul

We’ll give Rand Paul credit for seeming a little surprised when a popular Iowa talk radio host asked him about Jade Helm 15, although he said he’d been hearing about it from constituents and would “look into” it. If Paul ever did look into it and find that the conspiracy theory was completely bogus, however, he never bothered to say so.

The regular mention of Jade Helm 15 related concerns in Texas has convinced me to have a separate post from the original blog post on JH 15 (here) and update, hyperlink articles on this post. Since some of the information is timeline specific I want to be sure to keep the most accurate timeline available. Since the mention of ISIS in the recent Garland, TX attack, content is best kept organized by date.

As Jade Helm 15 approaches, “patriots,” and conspiracy theory “researchers” will up the level of paranoia. One article, posted by Dave Hodges at thecommonsenseshow.com suggests that ISIS is planning an invasion of Texas in time for JH 15. Why ISIS would want to make the jump to Texas at just that specific time is fairly hard to understand, but Hodges insists that Texans “in the know” are prepping for the event. Hodges explains that DHS will use the ISIS threat to declare Martial Law which, of course, is all part of a ploy for Barack Obama to become America’s first Emperor (the same plot that George W. Bush and Bill Clinton have been accused of attempting during their presidencies).

As of 4:00 PM CST, Youtube.com has 329,000 videos regarding Jade Helm 15 listed. The top link is entitled The “Big Event” and has 497,000 views. The vast majority of these videos likely represent some anti-Government, anti-Military, Illuminati, or other conspiracy theory view.

Update: July 1-13, 2015

As the official date of the Jade Helm 15 exercise approaches, alternative media sources have ramped up production of ever increasingly accusatory articles. Google shows 7,540,000+ articles and approximately 4,220,000 videos related to Jade Helm 15 at this point. One such “news story” circulating on Facebook in recent days shows one marine claiming Jade Helm 15 started July 4th and is meant to start Martial Law. Obama’s attempt to be dictator of America started with the assumed plutocrat stripping Texas of Statehood. Other such claims have infected the internet, while real people (mostly in Texas) are reacting to the fear and panic on a monumental scale. News has documented the massive panic that the Jade Helm 15 military training exercise has elicited (or, more accurately, uncovered) in various reports of small towns literally up in arms and roving militias vowing to monitor the U.S. Military (even after Gov. Abbott assigned the Texas State Guard to do so). If the paranoia expressed online is representative of the real climate on the ground there will be a lot of Americans pointing guns at a lot of US Military personnel (and not the other way around). We can only hope that nothing truly horrible comes from such a situation.

A recent Washington Post article, “Why Operation Jade Helm 15 is freaking out the Internet – and why it shouldn’t be,” attempted to address takes a stab at addressing some of what makes this particular conspiracy theory happen. If you read the article, however, it becomes clear that they don’t really answer either of the questions posed in its headline. No offense to the Washington Post, but, as this blog has generally argued, a major news outlet trying to convince people that a conspiracy is not happening is a great way to convince people that there is, in fact, a conspiracy happening.

Facts About Jade Helm 15

Jade Helm 15 is a Special Op training exercise running from July 15 to September 15. The exercises will occur over several states. The scope of this specific training exercise is larger than previous training exercises that the U.S. military has undertaken, something SOC acknowledges in their press release on the exercise. Using private and public land, SOC warns that increased noise and military vehicle presence is the only expected negative outcome as a result of the exercise.

Map of Jade Helm 15 high activity exercise area.

A Little Bit About Military Training Exercises.

As mentioned earlier, military training exercises are nothing new, Jade Helm 15 just happens to be one of the most expansive in scope. Here we can discuss some of the reasons why conspiracy theorists may be on high alert. The Washington Post explains that such drills occur regularly and site as an example the Navy’s 2014 Bold Alligator exercises. To anyone familiar with the 9/11 Truth Movement the subject of large-scale military exercises immediately sounds a conspiracy dog whistle. When “9/11 Truthers” first discovered that NORAD’s Northeast Air Defense Sector (NEADS) was conducting the training exercise Vigilant Guardian during the 9/11 attacks, suspicions seemed to be confirmed. The suspicions were further reinforced by reports that the White House situation room, and New York Pier exercises all being conducted during the time of the 9/11 terror attacks. “Smoking Gun!” says the 9/11 Truth community (which, by the way, still exists and has become a relevant social force), but strategic defense exercises are not rare. A group calling itself the Military Analysis Network explains that the Air Force runs “Red flag/Green flag” drills annually at Nellis AFB in Nevada, run an annual “Maple flag” joint exercise with Canada. Marine Corps. run 10 to 12 drills a year. The Navy runs 175 annual unit exercises. The Army is constantly running exercises (there is no number provided, but if you meet anyone who was in the Army ask them how many simulations and military exercises they participated in: my guess is double digits). American military forces have run joint branch exercises of various kinds, and run International Cooperative drills on (and over) American, Russian, German, Japanese, and South Korean soil. The fact is, if a military training exercise is not running at any given time, it should be considered a rarity. Furthermore, with ISIS expanding into Northern Africa, the Ebola outbreak still ongoing, Russia bristling, Yemen crumbling, the ever-fractious Sunni-Shi’ite conflict playing into all Middle Eastern security dynamics, and no sign that any of these global risks will do anything but get worse; there is nothing short of an absolute need for a fully functional, well-trained, and capable Special Operations Force team leading, facilitating, or (here’s hoping) preventing conflict through force of presence.

Listing Texas as “hostile” has some state residents up in arms.

Fear.

If the worry surrounding Jade Helm 15 were logical, I have already posed an argument significant enough to assuage most fears. This, however, is not what is going on: although there is a certain logic at work here. The 9/11 Truth movement never died, in fact it strengthened as years went on, made countless books, opinion documentaries, and websites that serve to promote and legitimate their viewpoints. With the election of Barack Obama, a virulent anti-Obama right-wing mentality, a strong 9/11 Truth movement, and various other ideological groups began to morph and interbreed ideologies, theories, fears, and expectations. Distrust of the government (whether it is because of Obama, Bush, The Illuminati, or Satan) may be all it takes for a person to adopt a belief in a willingness of said government to round up Americans and intern them into F.E.M.A. Camps, suspect a global conspiracy to keep an entire planet secret, or enlist Walmart in hiding subterranean entrances leading to thousands of miles of underground railways and secret cities.

Five Walmarts disappear, under mysterious circumstances.

What? Walmart?

Yeah. This part was unexpected. I am used to Aliens, and Nibiru, and the Illuminati. This time, it’s Walmart that comes out of left field. In recent weeks, a few Walmart stores closed due to plumbing problems. This did not go unquestioned and those who questioned why “plumbing problems” would shut down their local Walmart noted the same reasoning for five such closures, all in states that are in Jade Helm territory. The possible implications began being enumerated across the internet conspiracy hive mind and what developed was D.U.M.B.S.

D.U.M.B.s: Deep Underground Military Bases.

D.U.M.B.s either exist or they don’t. I can’t say for sure, because, well, with $2.3 Trillion in military spending unaccounted for in recent years, I hope they at least spent the money on something good. The problem I have with the idea that there are D.U.M.B.s is a logically driven one, namely, who is staffing these places? If there are 31 dark sites underground in addition to all of the known top secret facilities there there must be thousands (if not tens of thousands) of workers with high level clearance. Alien conspiracy theories have long suggested the existence of deep underground military bases, such as the one suspected of being at Dulce, NM. There has also been suggestions for years that there exists, underground, a system of high-speed tube shuttles connecting D.U.M.B.s (as shown in the map above). The implication here is that the five recently closed Walmart stores are, in reality, to be used as portals for massive troop movement into and out of D.U.M.B.s facility shuttles. It is possible that Walmart has, in fact, partnered with SOC to provide large makeshift shelter for strategic command during the Jade Helm exercise: this is just not the type of logic that is being employed by the concerned citizens that have sounded significant internet alarmist response. To seal the whole deal, conspiracy theorists clear up my concern for who could possibly be building these “underground tunnels” being dug under Walmart: workers are being “red-listed,” or murdered to prevent their leaking the “top secret” mission.

A Special Note from a Former-“Truther.”

With conspiracy theories, the facts are irrelevant. Speculation becomes reality. People trust word of mouth, innuendo, and anything that ups the ante of an increasingly apocalyptic worldview. Lack of evidence to support these beliefs is no match for the constant integration of new conspiratorial conjecture. The world is a dangerous place, it’s true, but Americans who live in some of the safest regions in the world are convincing themselves that they live in some of the least safe conditions imaginable. It is by the mere fact that these things are imaginable that some people believe that they are true. The logical dilemma every conspiracy theorist must face is that, if there can be no disproving your theory, there can neither be any proof, and no closure. The only logical outcome is more: more fear of the government, more prepping, more worry. The bind that anyone who can be called a conspiracy theorist (whether they would call themselves that or not) is that they must never try to disprove their own theory, for if they try they may succeed. If the current-most logical step in the 9/11 Truth movement is to implicate Walmart in a potential false-flag operation, underground tube shuttles and F.E.M.A. camps, then perhaps it is time for a fundamental reassessment of worldview. Every institution from the government to big business may seem out to get us from time to time, I know I feel that way often enough, but it is important to remember that this is a feeling and not to try to convince yourself that there is some malevolent force making it so. One day you find that you spent your life shadowboxing an imaginary enemy, obsessing about the minutia and making it mean something it does not, and believing that it’s the only thing that’s real. If you are not convinced, by me or by the content of this blog, there is a compromise: accept that no one knows everything that is going on, that no one ever has or will, and that no matter what the situation seems to be we may all be wrong. The other option is much more simple, if Jade Helm 15 does not end in the disappearance of millions, the destruction of our civilization or the disclosure of any anticipated secret entities, then take stock of why you came to the beliefs that you came to and take the opportunity to reassess the world and your place within it.

Some updates listed below, for an exhaustive timeline, visit this link.

As Jade Helm 15 approaches, “patriots,” and conspiracy theory “researchers” will up the level of paranoia. One article, posted by Dave Hodges at thecommonsenseshow.com suggests that ISIS is planning an invasion of Texas in time for JH 15. Why ISIS would want to make the jump to Texas at just that specific time is fairly hard to understand, but Hodges insists that Texans “in the know” are prepping for the event. Hodges explains that DHS will use the ISIS threat to declare Martial Law which, of course, is all part of a ploy for Barack Obama to become America’s first Emperor (the same plot that George W. Bush and Bill Clinton have been accused of attempting during their presidencies).

In the days leading up to his death, David Crowley still had hope that his independent film would pan out.

But Crowley, an Apple Valley filmmaker and screenwriter, also showed concern over the project — “Gray State,” a movie that the Army veteran scripted but had yet to film.

In an email to a prospective producer, Crowley wrote that the project was “now almost completely abandoned” by its original backers and that he was “exhausted from carrying and managing this burden for so many years.”

“Maybe the work load got too crazy; I don’t know the personal reasons, but at the end of it all here I am at the end of the tunnel all alone,” he wrote to a Los Angeles first assistant director in an email obtained by the Pioneer Press. “The fans continue to gather, but they’re frustrated and despondent. No one believes anymore.”

Crowley reached out to Jason Allen in the Dec. 17 email, asking if he wanted to be an executive producer and help out with the logistics of the film project, which he started about four years ago and revolves around a plot of government conspiracy.

“Jason, you know exactly what to do with this,” Crowley wrote.

Allen didn’t get the opportunity to take Crowley up on his offer.

On Saturday, Apple Valley police found Crowley, 29; his wife, Komel, a 28-year-old dietitian; and their 5-year-old daughter, Rani, dead of gunshot wounds in what investigators are saying was a murder-suicide at the family’s home in the 1000 block of Ramsdell Drive.

The deaths left their families, neighbors and friends wondering what went wrong.

Mason Hendricks, a friend of the couple, said he was unaware of even the slightest hint of trouble — financial or otherwise — between David and Komel and that he “can’t comprehend how one of them would hurt each other.”

“I honestly believe — and this is all speculative — that this may have been a joint decision,” Hendricks said of the murder-suicide. “He and Komel had a great relationship.

The bodies of David Crowley his wife, Komel Crowley; and their 5-year-old daughter, Rani, were discovered in their Apple Valley home Saturday in an apparent murder-suicide. (Pioneer Press: Scott Takushi)

They were like that couple that finish each others’ sentences … and you’re like, ‘Shut up, please. You’re too cute.’ “Apple Valley Police Chief Jon Rechtzigel said Tuesday there had not been prior police calls to the family’s home, a white and brown rambler in one of the city’s older neighborhoods.

On Wednesday, the Hennepin County medical examiner’s office confirmed the identities of the bodies. A manner of death for the three has not been released.

It isn’t known exactly when the three died, but neighbors have said they stopped seeing signs of life in the house around Christmas.

Hendricks said that one of David Crowley’s friends spoke with him on or around Dec. 17. Crowley’s brother, Dan, dropped off Christmas presents on their doorstep on Dec. 26 or 27. He saw the family’s dog, Paleo, in a window, but he didn’t knock because he didn’t want to bother the family. (Crowley’s brother is taking care of the dog, Hendricks said.)

David Crowley, an Owatonna, Minn., native, left behind a short note, Hendricks said. As far as its contents, Hendricks would say only that “it goes into some stuff that needs to be looked into later.”

Allen said he had been in touch with Crowley about his project over the past four years, mostly through emails. In September, Crowley flew to Los Angeles “to meet with possible financiers and producer-types,” Allen said, and that he seemed upbeat and positive about the project after the trip.

In his Dec. 17 email, Crowley wrote that in a few weeks he was going to release a 2 1/2-hour documentary, “a manifesto on the Gray State model (called The Rise), completely in tandem with a few new trailers for a Gray State series that has an integrated storyline.”

“When you see The Rise, and the new trailers for the #GRAYSTATE series, you’ll know what I mean when I say I have followed my heart at every step,” he wrote.

Crowley goes on to write that his wife was helping him build a database of professionals, actors and other industry contacts interested in the project, which he described as generating a “time bomb of public interest!”

For Allen, that energy and enthusiasm do not show a man who was about to give up on life.

“He was very much excited about releasing this documentary about his movie,” he said.

But the reality, Allen said, was that Crowley had severed ties with some of his original partners and was exploring other possibilities.

“That’s where I think David was coming to me, particularly in light of having these investors and financiers that ended up falling through,” Allen said.